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EDUCATION A new year, new faces at South Medford High School Damian Crowson takes the helm at South Medford High School Comment By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Posted Sep. 8, 2015 at 5:39 PM Updated Sep 8, 2015 at 6:01 PM By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Posted Sep. 8, 2015 at 5:39 PM Updated Sep 8, 2015 at 6:01 PM » Social News Tuesday was Damian Crowson’s 20th first day of school as an educator, but his first, first day at South Medford High School. Tuesday morning he put on one of his dad’s ties, ordered a skinny Mexican mocha at Dutch Bros. and began his 30-mile commute from his home in Grants Pass to his new school, arriving around 6:45 a.m. — about an hour before most teachers and two hours before most students. “It’s the best day of school,” he said as the buses began to roll in. Crowson, 43, started July 20 as principal of South Medford after former Principal Kevin Campbell was promoted to director of secondary school achievement. Crowson comes to the Medford School District from the Three Rivers School District, where he was principal of Lincoln Savage, a middle school with 400 students and 34 staff members. Before that he was principal of Lorna Byrne Middle School in Cave Junction, assistant principal and athletic director of Illinois Valley High School, a teacher on special assignment at Crater High School and a language arts, math and social studies teacher at South Middle School in Grants Pass. At South Medford, he’ll oversee about 1,825 high school students — that was Tuesday’s “warm bodies count” — and 147 staff members. “I feel like I have a bigger plate, and there’s a lot more on it,” he said. “But the goal’s the same: to see kids graduate.” On Tuesday, his tie, which he said he rarely wears, differentiated him from most other staff members who were sporting gray T-shirts with the iconic Superman emblem on the front and a compass on the back. South’s motto this year is: “We must never outgrow our inner superhero.” “It takes a superhuman effort to get 2,000 kids to engage and, four years down the road, to graduate,” Crowson said. Tuesday morning Crowson greeted students as they got off the bus, asked them how their summers were and, if necessary, pointed them in the right direction. “I hope that’s right,” said Crowson, after giving one student directions to C217. “If there’s a lot of late freshmen, it’s my fault.” Over the course of the day, Crowson visited almost every classroom to introduce himself and wish students a good school year. Over the course of the month, he plans to meet with staff members for at least 10 minutes each to get to know them, find out how long they’ve been with the district and hear about their vision for the school. Crowson said his focus can be narrowed down to the acronym BLACK, which stands for Building relationships, Listening, Appreciating, Communicating or collaborating, and Knowing. “Knowing each other, knowing the community and knowing the kids,” he explained. “I’m going to be a person that asks ‘Why?’ ” he said. “Why are we doing it this way? Why aren’t we doing it another way?” Also new to the district are SMHS assistant principal Jaime Hartt, formerly the assistant principal at Crater Academy of Health & Public Services; Chief Academic Officer Michelle Zundel, formerly principal of Ashland High School; Oak Grove Elementary Principal Liz Landon, formerly principal of Madrona Elementary School; and North Medford High School assistant principal Jesse Pershin, formerly the principal of Rogue River Junior/Senior High School. Other Medford administrators played a round of musical chairs over the summer, with Dan Smith moving from principal of Hedrick Middle School to principal of North Medford High School, Beth Anderson from assistant principal of SMHS to principal of Hedrick Middle School, Jeanne Grazioli from principal of Oak Grove Elementary to director of elementary student achievement, and Amy Tiger from assistant principal of NMHS to district athletics and safety director. After Crowson introduced himself as principal to one woman on campus Tuesday, she responded with, “Oh, I’ll pray for you.” “I hear that a lot,” Crowson replied. “I don’t know if I should be concerned.” Reach education reporter Teresa Thomas at 541-776-4497 or [email protected] . Follow her at www.twitter.com/teresathomas_mt . By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Posted Sep. 8, 2015 at 5:39 PM Updated Sep 8, 2015 at 6:01 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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